SPECIAL SECTION AWARD EDITION E-NEWSLETTER |
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Subsection Advisory Council Award |
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The purpose of the Subsection Activity Award is to honor individuals who have done an outstanding job promoting Subsection activities and provides an example of involved participation in the local Subsection and the water works industry.
Washington - Jeremy Djajadi, Sybis, LLC
PNWS Involvement: South Sound Subsection Secretary; Chair Water Information Technology Committee
Jeremy works with Sybis LLC, and has been a part of the South Sound Subsection for about three years. He currently serves as secretary for the subsection. where his duties included agendas, meeting minutes, tech issues and keeping our webpage and constant contact up to date.
Jeremy has been instrumental for the South Sound Subsection, especially this past year. He assisted the South Sound Subsection in completing their first ever virtual training in November 2020. This was no easy feat, Jeremy set up registration, met with the speakers to ensure presentations worked in the Zoom format, helped attendee’s trouble shoot tech issues, and seamlessly facilitated the session.
Additionally Jeremy serves the Section as the Chair of the Water Information Technology Committee where he is been instrumental in the recent website upgrade. Those members who have had the pleasure of working with Jeremy over the years know he is an expert in all things Google related.
Jeremy brings great insight and an inspiring positive attitude to our Subsection and Section.
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John Lechner Award of Excellence |
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An individual award of excellence to recognize a Section Service Provider Member who demonstrated exemplary service to the drinking water community and to AWWA's mission and goals.
Lee Odell, Murraysmith
PNWS Involvement: Member of both the Water Treatment and Research Committees. AWWA Involvement: Inorganics Technical Action Workgroup
Lee Odell has been active in our section and AWWA for more years than we can count. A past Section Board Trustee and last years recipient of the section's highest award the Powell Lindsay, those of us who have had the pleasure of working with Lee know he is very deserving of this year's Lechner award.
A nationally renowned authority in ground and surface water treatment, Lee has completed more than 200 water treatment projects up and down the West Coast. Lee is the author of the book, Treatment Technologies for Groundwater, published by AWWA in 2010.
As a technical pioneer and leader in water treatment in our industry and association, Lee's down to earth personality is refreshing. He places tremendous value on mentorship and relishes opportunities to support the growth of aspiring water treatment engineers.
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This award recognizes volunteers for their outstanding service and leadership in the advancement of the Water For People Mission.
Shantel Shepard, Tacoma Water
PNWS Involvement: Chair of the Water For People Committee; Vice President of the South Sound Subsection
Shantel has been a dedicated volunteer for Water For People for more than eight years. She has organized numerous fundraising events including the South Sound Subsection's very popular Wheels For Water event at the LeMay Car Museum. She has also been instrumental in planning the annual silent auction at our annual conference.
In addition to her Water For People Committee involvement Shantel also serves as the current Vice President of the South Sound Subsection.
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The Pioneer Award is presented annually to the young professional exemplifying the most outstanding leadership, technical expertise and dedication to community service. Young professionals can be individuals under the age of 35 or with less than 10 years experience in the industry.
Josh Kennedy, Jacobs Engineering
PNWS Involvement: Secretary of the Water Treatment Committee; Water For People; Young Professionals
Josh has been involved in AWWA activities for 7 years where he has helped to connect young professionals in the Puget Sound Area and has served as the secretary of the Water Treatment Committee since 2019. He has also been an instrumental piece of the planning team for the annual Water for Life fundraiser for Water for People, and has volunteered at the Puget Sound Engineering Fair to teach young people about water engineering.
Recently, Josh enrolled in the Leadership Tomorrow program that brings together non-profit, public, and private sector leaders from the Puget Sound region to discuss issues around equity, health, wellbeing, basic needs, arts/culture, and the environment. Another example of Josh’s strong commitment to the community is his participation in a Peace Corps as a water and sanitation engineer from 2011-2013.
Josh is a Drinking Water Engineer with Jacobs Engineering Group where he has been since 2014. He specializes in drinking water treatment process design, pilot testing, bench testing, startup, commissioning, and 3D visualizations. Besides being an outstanding engineer, he is also a great mentor for junior engineers.
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The Heart and Soul Award can be given by the Section Chair in recognition of outstanding service and exceptional devotion by a member or organization in the activities of the PNWS. Dedication, leadership and often times many hours of behind the scenes contributions contribute to the success of the Pacific Northwest Section.
Brad Phelps, Jacobs Engineering
PNWS Involvement: Chair of the Bylaws and Rules of Procedure Committee; 2013 George Warren Fuller recipient
Over the course of many years, Brad has been serving as the Chair of the Bylaws and Rules of Procedure Committee. He is only a committee of one and yet has made a huge impact on the way our section operates.
Over the past year Brad has helped our Section accomplish a very important goal of revising our Section Bylaws. His institutional knowledge gained over the many of years of involvement within our section was invaluable. Working closely with the association, making sure all questions were answered, Brad worked tirelessly to assure all parties at the association level that our bylaws were in line with the mission of AWWA.
His countless hours of writing, rewriting and editing comments and suggestions from the association, our Section Board and membership makes Brad truly deserving of this years Heart and Soul Award.
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The AWWA Honorary Member award is presented annually to up to three members of our international association. Awardees must be members whose knowledge and accomplishments in the field of water supply entitle them to special recognition. An Honorary Member shall have all the rights and privileges of an Active Member and shall be exempt from paying dues.
Denny Clouse, North City Water District
PNWS Involvement: Subsection and committee involvement since 1981; past Section Trustee and Chair; 2010 Powell Lindsay Award recipient; 2011 George Warren Fuller recipient
Denny Clouse started his career with the Medford Water Commission in 1981. When he retired from there in 2006 he held the position of Water Operations Superintendent.
Never one to sit still for long, Denny was immediately hired by North City Water District as their operations manager. In 2017 North City Water honored Denny with a formal resolution naming a pump station in the district in his name.
Throughout Denny's time with both Medford Water and North City Water he has been an active member of our section. From volunteering at the subsection and committee levels to section trustee and chair, Denny has always been passionate about our association and our industry. Our section has awarded Denny with our highest award the Powell Lindsay and the association has awarded Denny the Fuller Award. As Denny moves on towards retirement after a long and illustrious career it is only fitting that the association present him with the Honorary Member Award.
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This award is presented to members whose service to the section is representative of the extraordinary service of W.H. Powell and Alexander Lindsay. This is the highest award the Pacific Northwest Section presents.
Randy Black, Lakewood Water District
PNWS Involvement: Current Section AWWA Director and in June will be named Vice President of AWWA.
Randy has been an active member of AWWA for over 27 years. During that time he has been very active within our section serving in almost every capacity. In 2009 he was asked to spearhead the revitalization of the South Sound Subsection in advance of the 2010 Section Conference. He is a past chair of the Washington Water Utilities Council and Section Program Committee. He served as Section Trustee and Section Chair and continues to serve as our current Section Director on the AWWA Board. Beginning in June Randy will become a Vice President of AWWA in addition to his Director duties.
Randy and his wife Tina have two daughters. When Randy is not running the Lakewood Water District he also serves as a basketball official at high school and the junior college level.
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Corianne Burnett, Carollo Engineers
PNWS Involvement: Past Section Board of Trustees and current AWWA Board of Directors
Corianne has been heavily involved with the water industry, AWWA, and the PNWS section for her entire career. Since joining AWWA in 2005, she is well known as a person who gets it done in numerous Section and Association Committees. In particular, the work on our Young Professionals Committee made it a model for YP committees nationwide. In 2008, she was the recipient of the YP’s Pioneer Award, in recognition of community Involvement, leadership, and technical expertise. In 2011, she received the Heart and Soul Award, and then served as a Section Trustee from 2013-2015, while continuing to support the Young Professionals at both the Section and Association levels. After completing her term as trustee, this person took on the responsibility of editing Water Matters, where tireless work made our Section newsletter reliable and profitable. In 2020, she joined the AWWA Board of Directors as a service provider director-at-large.
She has two adorable Golden retrievers Walter and Margo, loves the movie Stripes, and grew up in the tiny town of Ester, outside of Fairbanks Alaska. Our Powell Lindsey Award winner has a motto “go big or go home” and we at PNWS know that she embodies this by giving 100% to everything she takes on.
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George Warren Fuller Award |
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George Warren Fuller Awards are presented annually by the American Water Works Association to the section's respective selected members for their distinguished service to the water supply field in commemoration of the sound engineering skill....the brilliant diplomatic talent...and the constructive leadership which characterized the life of George Warren Fuller. This is the highest award that the American Water Works Association presents to its members.
Dan Kegley, GSI Water Solutions
This years George Warren Fuller award is bestowed upon Dan Kegley in recognition of his skills and commitment in the fields of water, hydroelectric and wastewater management, water operations and customer service as well as his service and commitment to AWWA.
Dan is a certified Water Operator and had direct responsible charge for the City of Spokane Water System. Dan’s career with the City started as an entry level field person and ended as Director of the Spokane Water Department. Dan has a strong commitment to teamwork and providing customers safe and clean water as shown by his leadership in protecting the Spokane Valley Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer. As an AWWA member, he has served in leadership positions with the Inland Empire Subsection, Committees, Section Board of Trustees including Section Chair. His many years of providing service to the City of Spokane, AWWA and the next generation of water professionals makes Dan most worthy of receiving this highest honor in the Water Works industry.
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Section Quarterly Training Sponsor |
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2nd Quarter Virtual Training
May 20th - Sponsored by Stantec
Registration Closes May 14!
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Register now for our second quarter virtual training on May 20.
You can register for the full day (0.6 CEUs) $120 member price; or a half day, either morning or afternoon (0.3 CEUs) $60 member price. Registration closes Friday, May 14.
May 20 - Regulatory Rodeo: Will include a 5-year look at RTCR assessments; cover updates to the NSF 61 standards that impact coating systems; updates to the Lead and Copper Rule and routine monitoring; corrosion control treatment and required monitoring; PFAS technologies; cross connection control regulations and a case study of response to a system contamination; using data and machine learning to improve regulatory compliance.
Vendors and consultants we have several sponsorship opportunities available for you to increase your company visibility with our members. Opportunities exist for all four quarters. Sponsorships vary in price and benefits.
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Join WE Walk For Water
A Virtual Fundraiser for AWWA's Water Equation
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Our Section has a long history of supporting AWWA's philanthropic efforts. And while this last year has looked and felt very different, our tradition of fundraising must carry on!
PNWS-AWWA is once again participating in "WE Walk," a virtual fundraiser to raise money for the Water Equation. Please join our team or make a donation to support the important work of the Water Equation. Last year our team came in second with just over $5,000 raised. This year we are going for gold with a goal of $6,500.
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Section Diversity Member Inclusion Sub-Committee
Demographics Survey
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AWWA members know that when you join or renew your membership with AWWA you are asked some voluntary demographic information.
The PNWS Diversity Member and Inclusion Sub-Committee is looking for some additional voluntary data on our members to help plan for recruiting and retention of our members.
The survey takes just five minutes and will help us identify areas of improvement to promote an inclusive environment where all members feel welcome. Participants who complete the survey prior to June 1st will be entered in a raffle.
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Section Spring Virtual Trustee Meeting
Scheduled For Thursday, May 6
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Your Section Board of Trustees will be holding their Virtual Spring Meeting on Thursday, May 6 from 2-3:30.
The agenda for this meeting can be found on our website and includes several topics of interest to our members including:
- The final results and approval of our recent membership vote to approve our new Section Bylaws
- Final words from our Section Chair Ronda Farmer as she closes out her year as chair
- And a virtual gavel passing to incoming Section Chair John Roth.
Members are invited to attend and should contact the Section Office for a Zoom link.
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ACE21 Goes Completely Virtual
CEUs for Operators
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Now that ACE21 will happen entirely virtually, we want to keep you up to date on the
CEU process. As you know, many ACE sessions, when in-person, are submitted
for CEUs in the host and nearby Sections. Since virtual requirements for CEUs can
differ greatly from one area to another, the Conference & Events (C&E) team has
included language on the ACE21 page encouraging registrants to become more
familiar with their local requirements.
C&E, in coordination with the Education & Technical Services (ETS), are working to
finalize the sessions that will be submitted for Operator CEUs, and in which
Sections, by early May. Anyone who attends an entire session will receive
a certificate of participation. Please note a certificate is different than a CEU.
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Save The Dates
Golf and other Networking Events are Just Around The Corner
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COVID knocked out all our Section wide networking events in 2020. This year our members are ready to get back out and see each other at outdoor events this summer.
Mark your calendars now for these events. Registration coming soon!
- July 17 - Walla Walla For Water at Waterbrook Winery
- August 13 - Northwest Oregon Subsection tournament at Gresham Golf Club
- August 20 - Central Washington Subsection tournament at Apple Tree Resort - Yakima, WA
- August 21 - Southern Oregon Subsection tournament at Stone Ridge Golf Club - Eagle Point, OR
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Training and More Training Online
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- Construction Laborer
- Utilities Maintenance Technician
- Water/Wastewater Treatment Plant Operator
- Authority Manager
- Senior Engineering Technician
- Field Operations Manager
- Water Treatment Operator II - Lab Specialist
- Control Systems Technician
- Custodial Maintenance Person
- Project Manager - Civil PE
- Utility Craftsperson
- Wastewater and Water Operator
- Assistant Public Works Superintendent - Water Division
- Project Engineer
- Field Operations Manager
- Mid to Senior Water/Wastewater Engineer
- Facility Operator
- Operations Manager
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That's it for this month! Please send your news or information for inclusion in the June edition to the Section office.
Sincerely,
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Kyle Kihs
Executive Director
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